Thanks to Jonah Kawamura, ‘Iolani got off to the fast start that every sports team strives for.
Kawamura scored twice in the first five minutes off assists from Brendan Parke, and Parke added two goals of his own early in the second half as ‘Iolani defeated Kamehameha 4-0 in the Interscholastic League of Honolulu Division I boys soccer tournament final Saturday at ‘Iolani’s field.
“We’ve just recently been hitting our stride as a team offensively and defensively and I feel any team we go up against we have a good shot to make something happen,” said Kawamura, a sophomore.
‘Iolani will play at Punahou, the regular-season champion, for the overall ILH title Tuesday. The winner will receive a seeded berth and first-round bye in the 12-team HHSAA state tournament, which starts Feb. 4. The loser will play in the opening round.
The Raiders lost to and tied the Buffanblu during the regular season.
“You always expect ‘Iolani-Punahou games to be really tough matches, and the ILH championship is on the line for both teams and also the seeded berth, so I expect a good game,” Raiders coach Chris Lee said.
Kawamura scored in the third minute when he controlled a high-bouncing ball just in front of the goal line and tapped it in.
“We just came out buzzing with a lot of energy,” Kawamura said. “(Parke) played a nice ball over the top. There was a little cluster and luckily I got the last touch into the net.”
Kawamura made it 2-0 two minutes later.
“No. 4 got a nice touch back to me and there was a shank by one of their guys and I just took a touch to my right and shot with the left,” Kawamura said.
Parke, a senior, scored in the 45th and 50th minutes.
“The first one came from Jonah,” Parke said. “He was able to beat the guy around and cut it back. It was right in front of the goal and I was able to just put it away. Everyone knows the third goal is the most important. Once we got a 3-0 lead, the game was essentially over.”
On the final goal, Kawamura sent a ball to Jarin Simone on the left side and Simone slotted a perfect pass to Parke.
“(Simone) was able to beat his guy also and he sent it right across to me and I was in the right place at the right time and I was able to put that away,” Parke said.
The Raiders (10-1-1) nearly struck again in the 63rd when Jacob Lee’s free kick from 30 yards bounced off the crossbar.
‘Iolani dominated the game by stringing together passes and mixing in a few long balls.
“They were relentless, their transition was extremely quick, their speed was evident,” Kamehameha coach Uri Barron-Silva said.
The Warriors (2-5-5), who had five freshmen and five sophomores on their roster, managed only two shots on goal. Isaak Tanaka started in goal for ‘Iolani and was replaced by Akira Hanrahan in the 67th minute.
“We played both phases of the game really well today,” Lee said. “Defensively, we were winning balls and offensively we were patient and we supported each other.”
Barron-Silva said his players participated in the Pearl Harbor 5K and 10K Runs earlier in the day. He said it was mandatory for PE class and “unrescheduleable.”
“It was ridiculous. This will never happen again,” Barron-Silva said.
Barron-Silva did concede it had little impact on Saturday’s outcome.
“Hats off to them. They would have beaten us regardless,” he said.
